<p>It isn’t just about the spanish but what your son wants to focus on during his gap year? Art? Music? service? Mountain climbing? If you want exotic…Ecuador/Peru/Bolivia. You want high brow art/music/opera–Argentina and Chile…like Europe but much more fun. Bird watching…Paraguay, Ecuador. Business school or business internship–Colombia…hands down…entrepreneurial spirit times 10. Poverty–sadly, central america, paraguay, bolivia. Perhaps he wants to learn a native language,Quechua as well as spanish? Once he has focused on his interests, then you help him decide where he gets the experience he wants and you have minimal heartburn. Anywhere he goes, he needs to learn to listen to what host families and local people tell him. They know…same if he were going to Pittsburgh or Chicago. </p>
<p>OK…My H is from Ecuador, Ecuador is perhaps more exotic but not as safe even though it is our second home.I did study abroad in Colombia during some of the worst of the violence and came home unscathed and with excellent spanish. I understand it is now one of the safest countries for foreigners and hope to take the kids to Bogota and Cartagena next trip. We travel throughout spain and latin america frequently. I just returned from Argentina and Uruguay. Last year I was in Ecuador and Peru. My husband spends time for work in almost all central and south american countries (not venezuela or cuba). My kids are fluent in Spanish but look very foreign and are naive like most americans so as my son contemplates study abroad (to study art) we are pushing Argentina, Uruguay and Chile. Spain is great fun but very expensive. Also, a little too much in his comfort zone. As a mom, my preference is for Uruguay. ABSOLUTELY the safest country in latin america. The place is full of Brazilians and Argentinians who crave a little safety as well as beautiful beaches. Food is good, water is safe, girls (and guys) are very cute, people are SOOO polite and the cars…OMG…they stop! at stop signs and red lights? No kidding. There is jungle near the Paraguayan border, you have the most stunning beaches I have ever seen, you can pop over to Argentina when Montevideo seems too small. The wine…well, perhaps that is not essential but they have a unique grape that makes a great wine. …
Where would I say 'no" to my kid going for study abroad/gap: Guatemala, Mexico, Honduras, Venezuela…over my dead body…I wouldn’t sleep a wink. Sadly, that is the situation.<br>
OK. PM me if you have more questions.</p>
<p>Oh…yeah…critical consideration…where would YOU like to visit him? Uruguay in January is heaven if you are in snowbound Minnesota. Think about what country you are interested in visiting. Why did we tell our son to do study abroad in the WINTER term? yeah…it isn’t just about him you know…</p>